Education

SENATE BILL 2156
By Haile

HOUSE BILL 1977
By White
HB1977
010669
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AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 49,
relative to educators.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE:
SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 49, Chapter 5, is amended by adding
the following as a new part:
49-5-1201. Short title.
This part is known and may be cited as the "Tennessee Teacher Residency
Program Act."
49-5-1202. Part definitions.
As used in this part:
(1) "Department" means the department of education;
(2) "Educator preparation provider" or "EPP" means an educator
preparation provider approved by the state board of education;
(3) "Partnering LEA" means an LEA or public charter school formally
partnering with an EPP or nonprofit education preparation provider to operate a
residency program;
(4) "Residency program" means an education-related organization or
501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that conducts teacher preparation training using
a residency model in partnership with an LEA, institute of higher education, or
EPP;
(5) "State board" means the state board of education; and
(6) "Teacher resident" means an aspiring educator who is participating in
a residency program to complete requirements for an initial educator license.

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49-5-1203. Tennessee teacher residency program established – Administration.
(a) The department shall establish and implement a program to support
residency programs by awarding grants to residency programs pursuant to this part.
(b) To be eligible to receive a grant awarded pursuant to this section, a
residency program must meet the requirements in this part and in rules promulgated by
the state board.
(c) Subject to appropriations, the department shall award no more than forty-four
thousand five hundred dollars ($44,500) per teacher resident participating in a residency
program to support program operating costs, resident stipends, and mentor teacher
stipends for up to one hundred (100) teacher residents in an academic year.
(d) Partnering LEAs shall collaborate with EPPs or educator-related
organizations to facilitate the employment of teacher residents upon completion of the
residency program and obtaining an educator license.
49-5-1204. Residency program design and components.
In order to be eligible to receive a grant pursuant to § 49-5-1203, a residency
program must:
(1) Be designed to enrich the teaching profession and ensure teacher
residents are prepared for educator licensure;
(2) Require a teacher resident to complete at least one (1) full academic
year of rigorous EPP coursework integrated with a concurrent full academic year
of guided clinical apprenticeship in a partnering LEA classroom under the
supervision of a mentor teacher;
(3) Utilize competitive admission requirements for teacher residents;
(4) Use clear criteria based on effectiveness for selecting mentor
teachers;

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(5) Provide evidence-based training and compensation to mentor
teachers;
(6) Group teacher residents in cohorts for professional collaboration,
when practicable;
(7) Identify measures to determine a teacher resident's progress;
(8) Include an expectation of employment for a teacher resident from the
partnering LEA or a high-need LEA approved by the department, contingent on
program completion, obtaining an educator license, and position availability;
(9) Require teacher residents to commit to teach for a minimum of three
(3) consecutive years in a public school, or public charter school, within the
partnering LEA or a high-need LEA approved by the department, after program
completion and obtaining an educator license. If a teacher resident fails to
complete the three-year service requirement in this subdivision (9), then the
residency program shall reimburse the stipend received for the teacher resident,
under terms and conditions established by the department; and
(10) Provide support for teacher residents who complete the program for
at least one (1) year post-completion.
49-5-1205. Relation to licensure requirements.
A teacher resident who successfully completes a residency program that meets
the requirements in § 49-5-1204 satisfies the clinical experience required in § 49-5-5604.
49-5-1206. State board of education rules.
The state board, in consultation with the department, shall promulgate rules
necessary to implement this part. The rules must be promulgated in accordance with
the Uniform Administrative Procedures Act, compiled in title 4, chapter 5.
49-5-1207. Reporting requirements.

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(a) Residency programs that receive a grant pursuant to this part shall annually
submit data to review the program's success to the department. The department shall
notify each residency program of the data that must be submitted pursuant to this
subsection (a) and the date by which the data must be submitted.
(b) Beginning November 1, 2028, and once every two (2) years thereafter, the
department shall submit a teacher residency program report on the outcomes of
residency programs participating in this program by utilizing the data received pursuant
to subsection (a) to the education committee of the senate; the finance, ways and means
committee of the senate; the committee of the house of representatives having
jurisdiction over teachers; the committee of the house of representatives having
jurisdiction over financing programs for teachers; and the state board.
SECTION 2. The headings in this act are for reference purposes only and do not
constitute a part of the law enacted by this act. However, the Tennessee Code Commission is
requested to include the headings in any compilation or publication containing this act.
SECTION 3. This act takes effect upon becoming a law, the public welfare requiring it.